EU content law incompatible with U.S. free speech tradition, says FCC's Carr

The European Union's content moderation law is incompatible with America's free speech tradition and there is a risk that it will excessively restrict freedom of expression, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) chairman said on Monday.

"There is some concern that I have with respect to the approach that Europe is taking with the DSA (Digital Services Act) in particular," Brendan Carr, a Republican appointed to the FCC by U.S. President Donald Trump, said at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain.

For U.S. tech companies in Europe, Carr said, DSA's censorship "is something that is incompatible with both our free speech tradition in America and the commitments that these technology companies have made to a diversity of opinions."

The DSA, which became effective a year ago, is meant to make the online environment safer and fairer by compelling tech giants to do more to tackle illegal content including hate speech and child sexual abuse material.

It aims to curb misuse of platforms that impinge on fundamental rights and rein in intentional manipulation, such as the use of bots to influence elections and public health issues.

Violations of the DSA could potentially mean big fines. Social media companies X and Meta are currently being investigated under the DSA.

Last month, Trump signed a memorandum warning that his administration would scrutinise the EU's Digital Markets Act and the DSA "that dictate how American companies interact with consumers in the European Union".

In a letter to U.S. technology companies last week, Carr requested briefings on how they planned to reconcile the DSA with America's free speech tradition, and the role they believed EU government officials would play in encouraging the silencing of speech.

"If there is an urge in Europe to engage in protectionist regulations, to give disparate treatment to U.S. technology companies, the Trump administration has been clear that we are going to speak up and defend the interests of U.S. businesses," he said.

EU digital chief Henna Virkkunen, who was in attendance at the meeting, did not comment on Carr's speech.